Luis Gil talks transitioning back to MLS from Liga MX

From the outside looking in, for Luis Gil, it’s been quite a journey in his young but potential soccer career.

Gil kicked off his professional career at Real Salt Lake, spending six seasons with the Western Conference club before leaving to join and play for Liga MX side Queretaro in 2016.

For the 23-year-old midfielder, playing in the Mexican league fitted his style of play, but that similarity brought its fair share of difficulties that later he said made him grow as a player prior to arriving to Orlando City on loan last April.

“There was a lot more players with my style of play,” Gil told the Orlando Soccer Journal. “So it was a lot more difficult to compete with those guys. There’s plenty of players that do the same thing as me, have the same vision as me, or vice versa. It was just grinding out those opportunities to play.”

That grind Gil talks about is a factor on why Orlando City head coach Jason Kreis decided to bring him to Central Florida… to relive and reinvigorate their successful time from their days at RSL.

“I’ve played with him before, he knows my style of play, and obviously having that formation change he’s had here, it helps because I’m familiar with it,” he added. “Obviously, returning to this league, I need to get familiar again with the style of play here because it is a little bit different. I feel like I’m getting there, little by little.”

Gil spent the 2016 calendar year playing at Queretaro, where he made a total of 14 appearances in league and cup competition.

The California native is slowly finding his footing since his return to MLS, tallying nine appearances while starting three times in his last five appearances with the Lions.

When asked how the current Mexican Clausura final will turnout, Gil said Tigres are favorites over Guadalajara, especially after rallying to a 2-2 draw during Thursday’s first-leg match at El Volcan.

Gil will be available for selection when Orlando City takes on Minnesota United on Saturday at TCF Bank Stadium. Kickoff is scheduled for 8 p.m. ET.